For these franchisees, one location just wasn’t enough—meet three business owners embracing the responsibilities that come with multi-unit ownership
By Georgie Binks
One of the many exciting aspects about investing in your own franchise is the potential for success, and with it, growth. As franchisees find their business thriving, they may consider opening more locations, and before long they’re a multi-unit marvel of their own. Expanding a business takes determination, but with it comes more opportunity, greater expertise, and the ability to foster more growth in the community. To illustrate the ins and outs of multi-unit franchising, Franchise Canada spoke with three business owners about their franchising journeys.
Century 21 Heritage House
Hearing about the locations of Anthony Montanaro’s multi-unit Century 21 franchise empire is like taking a breezy drive through the beautiful countryside of southern and southwestern Ontario: Woodstock, Ingersoll, Tillsonburg, Kitchener, Brantford, St. Thomas, Guelph, Durham, Seaforth, Mount Forest, Niagara Falls, St. Catharines, Fonthill, and Fort Erie. With 14 locations in all, Montanaro’s life is pretty busy.
“In the real estate industry,” Montanaro explains, “Century 21 Canada is known for its innovation, global brand recognition, and commitment to helping agents and franchisees succeed. What makes it unique is its strong legacy, having been in Canada for close to 50 years, along with its cutting-edge technology, marketing, training, and global referral network.”
Montanaro says the main benefits of owning a Century 21 franchise is that it’s one of the best-known real estate brands globally and offers great technology and support.
He was drawn to the franchise because of its reputation for excellence, strong brand presence, and the level of support it provides franchisees. He quotes founder U. Gary Charlwood, who says, “With Century 21 Canada you’re in business for yourself, but not by yourself.”
Montanaro says the benefits of owning more than one location include greater revenue potential, brand dominance in the marketplace, and the ability to scale marketing and operational efficiencies. It also means more opportunities for agents and staff within the organization. The challenges with running multiple locations are the increased financial investment and operational risk. Multi-unit franchisees also need to oversee more staff and agents, which requires strong leadership.
According to Montanaro, the greatest challenges facing the industry are fluctuations in the market, attracting and keeping top agents, keeping up with the latest tools and platforms to stay competitive, and competing with both independent brokerages and other franchise brands.
As for training and support, Century 21 offers onboarding and business training for both new franchisees and agents, marketing to help franchisees grow their business, and technology to streamline operations along with networking and conference opportunities.
In order to be successful, a franchisee needs to be entrepreneurial, driven, and customer-focused, with strong leadership qualities. For franchisees considering multi-unit ownership, Montanaro says, “Make sure your initial location has a solid foundation and is running smoothly before taking on another. You should also be financially prepared as expansion does require capital, so make sure that cash flow is positive. Finally, build a strong leadership team. You can’t do it alone.”
But with Century 21 Canada, you don’t have to.
Bimbo Canada
When it comes to running his two Bimbo Canada franchise businesses and one distributor route, Bhupinder Saini says, “You have to stop looking at the clock. Our works starts at 2:30 in the morning. It’s not a nine to five job. We don’t know when it’s going to end.”
While that might sound a little daunting, Saini says he’s ready to take on another route. He started with his first Bimbo Canada franchise route in Darthmouth, Nova Scotia, in April 2023, then quickly added two more—altogether acquiring three routes in two years.
Saini had previously worked as a senior infrastructure consultant in Montreal. “One day I just wanted to start something of my own and work for myself,” he says.
Bimbo Canada is the country’s largest and oldest bakery, providing high-quality baked goods and snacks to Canadians. As Saini explains, the baked goods are produced by Bimbo Canada. The franchisee is responsible for ordering, distributing, and selling the products to restaurants and stores after the baked goods arrive at the sales centre in Dartmouth.
The biggest challenge is hiring and training drivers. Saini says, “This business requires training, understanding the logic and the skill to drive five-thousand kilos of weight in the back of the truck. It takes a month or two just to train the driver and, of course, [they need] the physical strength to load and unload the product into the truck.”
According to Saini, another challenge is the task of ordering, which requires some foreknowledge about consumer habits and customer needs—increasing orders before a holiday, for example.: To help, “Bimbo Canada provides us with the software which helps with predictive ordering,” Saini says.
Along with those resources, the brand offers ongoing support that’s always available for franchisees. “If you ask them to meet, they’ll come to the stores and see you within 24 hours,” says Saini.
But the job isn’t easy, he warns: “If you want [to work] nine to five, eight hours a day, this is not for you. You need to be quick to resolve things because there’s a new problem every day. You’re dealing with customers, heavy machines, your trucks.”
But that hard work is rewarded with the freedom to work for oneself. “You don’t need any technical expertise or particular kinds of skills. You will develop them over time,” says Saini.
For Saini, the main benefit of working with Bimbo Canada is the opportunity for entrepreneurial growth. “I did not plan to grow so quickly, but it happened and I am happy with it. I’m planning to add another [route] if the opportunity arises.”
Global Pet Foods
It was more than just the fluffy animals and their charming personalities bouncing through the door that convinced Josh Blinder to open three Global Pet Foods locations in Atlantic Canada. “I’m proud to help educate our customers on ways they can improve the lives of their pets,” he says.
For Blinder, that means owning two Global Pet Foods locations in Prince Edward Island and one in St. John’s, Newfoundland. He started as a corporate employee with the franchise in 2005, and soon found himself purchasing a franchise. Blinder says, “I had no intention of owning multiple locations but quickly discovered the opportunity of being a multi-store owner.”
Global Pet Foods has been a trusted Canadian brand for almost 50 years in an industry with consistent growth. The brand’s concept centres around the goal of being the most trusted source of innovative pet care products in Canada, helping pets and their families live happier, healthier lives. “We are especially proud of the large selection of Canadian-made and -sourced pet products,” says Blinder.
Choosing locations and expanding into different areas requires careful research and strategy. Blinder says, “There’s great support from our franchisor to analyze the demographics and market opportunities available to us. Although my Newfoundland business is far from my P.E.I. business, I strategically opened my third location in a province that had, at that time, no other Global Pet Foods stores. It allowed me to develop my own market and create a relationship within my own community.”
Having multiple locations allows you to focus on being an entrepreneur as opposed to just an owner-operator, Blinder says. “A single store would allow a franchisee to be active in every aspect of the day-to-day business but having more than one location allows you to develop a system, within a system, that works for you.”
Being a part of a thriving and successful industry that’s constantly changing means there’s a lot of competition, and that can be a challenge. The key is to “keep building, adapting, innovating, and growing to remain relevant to our customers,” says Blinder. To any prospective franchisees considering multi-unit ownership, Blinder says that owning multiple Global Pet Foods locations in one market will allow you to build your local brand and improve your overall profitability.
And, of course, meet a lot more pets.
